Keeping The (Creative) Energy Tank Full

  Today is one of the coldest days here in a very long time- 17 F, gusting winds and a wind chill factor of -1 F!! A good day to stay in, create, and blog, along with a nice hot cup of honey chamomile Tulsi tea.

  For week 5 of the 52 Weeks of Creative Abundance online class (link on sidebar) the discussion was about filling our energy tanks and allowing ourselves the time for it despite the everyday business of our lives. I tend to fill my tank with creativity, but sometimes I find it in a few moments of meditation, or listening to music, or just spending a few moments outside, or talking on the phone with a friend. It is so important especially for us women to allow ourselves a bit of time to fill our tanks, because if our tanks are allowed to go empty, the energy is gone too. Think about it. How do you fill your energy tank??

  First up here are some ATCS (this week's theme) I made and am linking to Inspiration Avenue . I began making ATCs (artist trading cards) years ago thru swaps and trades and have hundreds of beautiful art in my collection. I still make them on occasion although not near as much as I used to.

  These cards are 2 1/2" x 3 1/2"-the standard size for ATCS. They were made using painted, stamped, or patterned paper backgrounds. I also used ribbon and buttons on some. The images and German scraps are all from ARTchix Studio.

  Now here are photos of my journal for week 4 of my 52 Weeks class:

     My journal spread began with a stencil I recently purchased.It's by TCW and it's called Mini Fence Frame. Of course I couldn't wait to try it out using my Dylusions spray inks! Note the stencil is bordered by some fun duct tape. This idea came from Julie Fei Fan Balzer as a way to extend the edges which are sometimes very narrow. I thought I'd try it and so far I like it!

 

 

   Week 4 was about how we can allow ourselves to be fully present in an ordinary task. For me it's dusting. Although it can be a daunting task, having many objects and photographs in a Victorian style home I can't help but be reminded of these special mementos and memories each item holds.

  On to week 5, filling up the energy tank:

 

  The first way I did it by stopping in the midst of a task, grabbing my camera and going outside to catch this very special beautiful sunset form my yard whilst hundreds of crows were seen and heard above my head. They make this journey across the sky most evenings at this time. It was such a special few moments of awe and gratitude-and tho I wasn't out more than 10 min. or so it filled my tank immensely.

  Then I refilled my tank another day getting lost in the creative expression of making origami flowers  (directions we received in class) and arranging them for a simple presentation:

  I made two flowers using Japanese origami paper I already had on hand. The larger one is made with 6 " x 6" papers. The smaller one is with 4 1/2" x 4 1/2". I glued them to a branch from my yard. I chose a small crystal vase which I added clear pebbles and water to (to add more of the Feng Shui elements). The tag reads "allow the simple joys to be the big ones". It's sitting at my art table as a reminder.

  These are the journal pages I did:

  I wanted to keep this simple so all I did on the right was glue down prints of the photos. On the left I just used a clear alphabet stamp set and my sunset photo.The splotches you see are what seeped thru from week 4's sprayed pages. The top left photo of flowers was a special pic I had to add although it wasn't made by me.

  My hubby made this for me for our anniversary about 4 yrs ago. Things were very tight financially so I asked him to please not spend money on flowers. When I got home later that day I found these on the table(sniff,sniff). He hand cut each flower layer from matboard (he's a carpenter/ woodworker, frames most all of our photos, canes chairs,etc. so he definitely is talented and creative). He used a very heavy gage wire for stems and then added little squares of that shiny black duct-like tape for the stamens. In all honesty I can say that nothing else has touched my heart like this gift. Big joys from  simple things.

       " Breathing in, I calm my body. Breathing out, I smile. Dwelling in the present moment I know this is a wonderful moment."     Thich Nhat Hanh